The present invention relates to novel amidomethyl-substituted 1-(carboxyalkyl)-cyclopentylcarbonylamino-benzazepine-N-acetic acid derivatives which are useful e.g. for the prophylaxis and/or treatment of cardiovascular conditions or diseases, especially cardiac insufficiency, in particular congestive heart failure; hypertension, including secondary forms of hypertension such as essential hypertension, renal hypertension and/or pulmonary hypertension and/or for the prophylaxis and/or treatment of sexual dysfunction and/or for the prophylaxis and/or treatment of adverse conditions associated with apoptosis, and also to medicaments containing these compounds. Furthermore, the invention relates to a process for the preparation of the novel amidomethyl-substituted benzazepine-N-acetic acid derivatives and intermediate products of this process.
Sexual dysfunction (SD) is a significant clinical problem which can affect both males and females. The causes of SD may be both organic as well as psychological. Organic aspects of SD are typically caused by underlying vascular diseases, such as those associated with hypertension or diabetes mellitus, by prescription medication and/or by psychiatric disease such as depression. Psychological factors include fear, performance anxiety and interpersonal conflict. SD impairs sexual performance, diminishes self-esteem and disrupts personal relationships thereby inducing personal distress.
Apoptosis is closely involved in morphogenesis and histogenesis in the development process, maintenance of homeostasis, and bio-defense, and it is cell death having an important role in maintaining individual lives. When the death process regulated by genes is congenially or postnatally hindered, apoptosis is excessively induced or inhibited to cause functional disorders in various organs, and thus diseases. Drugs showing an apoptosis inhibitory activity can be used as agents for the prophylaxis and treatment of diseases which are thought to be mediated by promotion of apoptosis.
Cardiovascular-active benzazepine-, benzoxazepine- and benzothiazepine-N-acetic acid derivatives having a marked inhibitory action on the enzyme neutral endopeptidase (=NEP) are already known from specification EP 0 733 642 A1 (=U.S. Pat. No. 5,677,297). In addition, the compounds described therein also have lesser properties which inhibit endothelin-converting enzyme (=ECE). Further favourable pharmacological properties of compounds falling within the structural scope of EP 0 733 642 A1 are known from documents EP 0 830 863 A1 (=U.S. Pat. No. 5,783,53), WO 00/48601 A1 (=U.S. Pat. No. 6,482,820) and WO 01/03699 A1 (=US-2003-0040512-A1).
Phosphonic acid substituted benzazepinone-N-acidic acid derivatives with a combined inhibitory effect on NEP and ECE are disclosed in document EP 0 916 679 A1 (=U.S. Pat. No. 5,952,327).
Pharmaceutical preparations are known from specification WO 02/094176 A2 which contain compounds having an advantageous combinatory action which inhibits the metalloprotease enzymes NEP and IGS5 and have, inter alia, cardiovascular-active properties. Suitable compounds for such combination preparations are also compounds which fall within the scope of specifications EP 0 733 642 A1 and EP 0 916 679 A1. The enzyme IGS5, as it is to be understood in the context of this invention, and its physiological role in connection with cardiovascular diseases, is known per se from the specification WO 01/36610 A1. The aforementioned enzyme IGS5 is also known as “human soluble endopeptidase” (=hSEP).
International application no. WO 99/55726 A1 discloses that certain thiol inhibitors of ECE are useful among other things for treating or inhibiting erectile dysfunction.
European patent application no. EP 1 097 719 A1 discloses the use of NEP inhibitors for the treatment of female sexual dysfunction (=FSD).
Publication WO 02/06492 A1 discloses i.a. antibodies against and inhibitors of a specific polypeptide having soluble secreted endopeptidase (=SEP) activity.
Published U.S. patent application Ser. No. US 2003-0045449 discloses that matrix-metalloprotease inhibitors are useful for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. Problems associated with that invention are first that matrix-metalloprotease inhibitors comprise a broad group of protease inhibitors, and second that according to the said application the metalloproteases must be used in a pharmaceutical composition also containing an N-NOS inhibitor.
Published U.S. patent application Ser. No. US 2002-0013307 teaches the use of vasopeptidase inhibitors to treat or slow the progression of cognitive dysfunction and to treat and/or prevent dementia.
M. Sumitomo et al. (see Clinical Cancer Research 10 (2004) 260-266) describe the chemosensitization of androgen-independent prostate cancer with NEP.